My day at work...an averaged equation.

So I know some of you know where I work...but I know some don't know what I do. And since it's the middle of the week and I'm not traveling...I figure I'll take a minute and fill you in.

So I graduated in April, 2007, with my Bachelor of Science Degree in Transportation Design. I design, draw, and make models of cars. The company I work for is RTT, Real Time Technology (www.RTTUSA.com). RTT receives 3D car models in the computer, and utilize programs called Deltagen and Maya to clean the data...make it look good...and then output it to high quality car brochures, web car configurators, movies, pictures, xray views, etc. The program Deltagen can also be used to evaluate design, get measurements, cutaways, and basically view the car in the computer before ever having to make a physical model. We are basically the only company that works for all the major car companies...as data confidentiality is important in this business and we have earned the trust of many companies.

I am out in Germany to take advantage of the large work force the company has in Munich, as the U.S. is currently developing it's offices and no one is there to really 'teach' me the RTT workflow. Three of us came from Pasadena, myself, Allen, and Curtis...two very good friends of mine. So they put us each in a specific department to work. We each get a computer, desk, and free run on water, carbonated water, apple and orange juice drinks, cokes, coffee, cookies, fruit, peanuts, chips, beer....ok well there are bottles all over and people do drink during the work day, usually around 5pm, at their desk, while working. This is not something I partake in. I believe there are over 150 people at RTT. It takes about 3 minutes to walk from end to end, and there is also a floor below us that is half the size. It's huge.

8 am - Wake up.
Wake up, shower, change, grab my bag, jacket, umbrella (never know when you're gonna need it). Head out the door by 830. It takes about 5 minutes to walk to the Fraunhoferstrasse train station. Fraunhofer is the street name, strasse means street...they combine a lot of words in Germany. Down the escalater below street level I go...I take the U2 towards Messestadt-Ost, trains come every 5 minutes in the morning...so you don't have to wait long. On the train it's quiet, no music, no one talks, people glance at each other and look away, it's slightly uncomfortable. The sound of the rails screetching at ear pearcing level can be heard if you happen to get on an older train. My stop is Karl-Preis-Platz...which is about a 10 minute subway ride. I hop off the train and head up from the underworld to the rainy streets of Munich. It's about a 7 minute walk to work from the train station, so it takes about 30 minutes to get to work all together. Sometimes I stop in Red Coffee and grab a bagel, but lately the sesame bagels are hard as a rock, and I know it's not 'German' to serve stale bagels...

9 am - Start of the day
Right now I am in data preparation. I come into work around 9am (on a good day), check emails and things and eat my bagel and cream cheese for about 20 minutes. It's always nice to sit down and have a bunch of email from family and friends...although the generalized bank, amazon.com, or ebay emails creep in there. Plus I keep getting these emails about student loans and having to repay them....weird. Anyhow, after my round of emails and responses, I open my programs, either Maya or Deltagen, depending on the task. I open my 3D file, and begin to 'clean' the data. The parts I work with are the various parts of a car, inside and out, that you will see when looking at the car from normal viewing positions. Nothing inside, like bits behind the dashboard or the material underneath the seat cushion are necessary, throw that out. The reason we clean this is for making the web configurators and such faster and easier to use.

12 pm - Lunchtime
Around 12, I go to lunch at a place called Volksgarden...which is basically the RTT cafeteria. RTT employees get coupons to get food for 3 euro, but since I am not paid through Munich I am not able to get these. Not a bad deal because you only get two food choices per day and a drink. I did get a free drink coupon, but I can order whatever I want because I pay full price. You only go to Volksgarden if you work in the buildings surrounding it, you'd never come from outside the area to eat here, it only exists because all these people need to eat somewhere close and cheap. Ando don't expect good service, a smile, or for them to remember you don't speak German very well even though you come in four times a week. I am getting good at the 'I have no idea what you just said' face. I do go to other places...but if I want to eat with friends from work, I go there 95% of the time.

1230 pm - Racing
So, lunch is over, so Reijo and I go back to work and go to the simulator room. This is where they have two racing seats hooked up to the computer with a racing game called R Factor, steering wheels, paddle shifters, pedals, the whole bit. We race for about 25 minutes, the winner going off to have a great day, the loser to be angry and say 'this game sucks!'. But then it's about 1, so it's back to work.

3 pm - Fussball
Two hours later at three about 4 to 6 of us go downstairs to the fussball table (table soccer, kicker, etc). We play about 4 rounds of this, first team to six. And depending on who you play at the end it's either 'good game man' or 'biggest losers of all time!'. Yes the competition is high and everyone is very good....almost too good. I've never seen some people play this game the way they play it out here. My first day I was like 'yeah i play', then I went down and got my ass kicked hard. But after a month of my daily regiment of table soccer, I'm becoming a pretty threatening opponent. It helps to play with someone who is really good on your team.

20 minutes of this, and back to work. I finish out the day working away on the computer with different car models. At the same time I juggle between cruising the internet, emailing people, and listening to music. This is a very simplified version of my day at work, almost a little to 'on the surface' of what I do. I'll save my personal thoughts for a smaller broadcast. But I get paid to work with car models all day, live in Germany for another 3 months, and then go back to Pasadena. And on Monday the 17th of September, I will be going to the Frankfurt Auto Show in Germany. Sweet. That is also my birthday...I always wondered what random city in Europe I might be spending my birthday in...now I know.

6-7 pm - Head to the train station
Or bike home, but with the rainy weather this is less and less feasible way to get to work and back. I like to arrive home at night relatively dry. Plus it's getting pretty cold out. I take the U2 towards Feldmoching...and exit the train at Fraunhoferstrasse, and start my five minute walk home.

Wish I could put some pictures up of work, but that isn't going to happen. Cheap clipart pictures of and old 35mm camera behind a big circle with a strike through it all over work basically say 'do this and get fired, idiot.' So I will leave you to your imagination of what it looks like...it'll probably be better that way.

parker